Monica C. Sleumer

Postdoctoral Fellow, Tsinghua University

苏漠

清华大学博士后

About Monica Sleumer

Monica is a Canadian who is currently working as a postdoctoral research fellow at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. She grew up in Calgary, Alberta, and lived in Vancouver, British Columbia for 15 years before moving to Beijing.

At the University of British Columbia, Monica completed a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry before becoming interested in the field of bioinformatics. At the time, there were no bioinformatics courses or programs at UBC, so she took a second Bachelor of Science in computer science. Her first bioinformatics research project was an analysis of SAGE data with Professor Raymond Ng, completed in 2001.

After graduation, Monica worked in the biotech industry for two years. During this time, influenced by the large number of Chinese store signs and bookstores in Vancouver, she became interested in the Chinese language. In 2003, she started her PhD studies in genetics and bioinformatics with Professor Steven Jones of the Genome Sciences Centre.

After completing her PhD in 2009, Monica attended a three-month course in Mandarin at Beijing Language and Culture University, and then took up a postdoctoral fellowship at Tsinghua University with Professor Michael Q. Zhang. Her research concerns the regulation of ribosomal protein genes in the nematode C. elegans. In her spare time she likes to study Chinese, watch Chinese TV shows, and travel around China. Her favourite Chinese TV shows are Golden Age of the Daughter-in-Law and Goodbye, Vancouver.

Beijing is a pleasant and modern city in which to live. Things change a little faster here than they do in Vancouver—the subway system gets a new line added every 6 months or so—which makes life more interesting.

People are friendly and the crime rate seems to be quite low. There are numerous beautiful and historical scenic locations all over China, and the high-speed rail network is world-class, making them easy to reach for the most part. The cost of living is low and delicious food is available everywhere you turn.

Best of all, the language is like an endless intricate puzzle which gets easier over time but never loses its challenge.